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Paradise Papers

Paradise Papers expose tax schemes of global elite

Reporters have unveiled some 13.4 million secret documents detailing evidence of tax avoidance among high-ranking politicians and the super wealthy. Some in US President Donald Trump's cabinet have been implicated.

Some 400 reporters from 67 countries have scoured 13.4 million secret documents and uncovered tax-avoidance techniques used by the super rich and high-ranking politicians, German media reported on Sunday.

The leaked data was obtained by German newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung, which said that the majority of the documents stem from offshore law firm Appleby, which was founded in Bermuda but has offices in several other locations. The company reported last month that it had been hacked.

Global elite named in Paradise Papers

Bono and Nude Estates

U2 frontman and activist Bono was one of the highest-profile players named in the papers. In an elaborate web of financial transactions, Bono invested in a Maltese company called Nude Estates that was involved in a shady deal over a Lithuanian shopping mall. Malta is famous for its liberal tax policies. A spokesman for the singer denied any wrongdoing.

Global elite named in Paradise Papers

US commerce secretary

President Donald Trump's Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross was listed in the papers for his interests in the Russian gas company Sibur. Ross has now been accused of failing to disclose his Russian connections to Congress during his confirmation hearing, though Ross has argued that as the company is not one facing US sanctions, he was not obliged to disclose them.

Global elite named in Paradise Papers

Queen's private estate in hot water

Queen Elizabeth II is provided an income by her private estate, the Duchy of Lancaster. According to the Paradise Papers, the duchy invested 10 million pounds ($13 million) in offshore accounts in Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. The estate has said that the investments are legal.

Global elite named in Paradise Papers

Formula One champion

Reigning Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton reportedly avoided taxes on his private jet through an elaborate tax avoidance scheme, according go the Paradise Papers. The leaked documents show that Hamilton received a £3.3 million tax refund in 2013 after his plane was imported to the Isle of Man, a low tax British dependency located off the western coast of England.

Global elite named in Paradise Papers

Germany's former chancellor

Gerhard Schröder, leader of Germany from 1998 to 2005, was named for his management role at the Russian-British energy firm TNK-BP in 2009. The company was registered in the tax haven British Virgin Islands. In 2013, TNK-BP was bought by Russian energy giant Rosneft — where Schröder is now the independent director of the board.

Global elite named in Paradise Papers

Colombia's president caught

According to the papers, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos is listed as the director of two offshore companies in Barbados. He previously claimed to have severed ties with them in 2000 when he became minister of finance.

Global elite named in Paradise Papers

Lifestyles of the rich and famous

Not all of the revelations in the Paradise Papers necessarily detail illegal activity. But they do shed light on some of the strange investments and luxurious possessions of the world's elite, including Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen's yacht. Besides Microsoft, other US companies like Apple, McDonald's, Facebook and Walmart were found to have ties to Appleby.

Global elite named in Paradise Papers

Madonna medical supplies

One of the odd investments listed in the Paradise Papers is singer Madonna's stake in a medical supply firm. Actress Keira Knightley was also found to have stock in a Jersey-based real-estate firm.

In turn, Sibur's biggest shareholders include Putin-ally Leonid Mikhelson, who controls another energy company sanctioned by the US Treasury for its close ties to the Russian president.

Sibur's two other owners include Gennady Timchenko, who is also sanctioned by the US government for his ties to Putin, and Kirill Shamalov, who is married to Putin's youngest daughter.

In addition to Ross, Süddeutsche Zeitung reported that over a dozen Trump advisers, cabinet members and campaign donors appear in the leaked data.

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

2013: Mr Trump goes to Russia

June 18, 2013. Donald Trump tweeted: "The Miss Universe Pageant will be broadcast live from MOSCOW, RUSSIA on November 9. A big deal that will bring our countries together!" He later added: "Do you think Putin will be going - if so, will he become my new best friend?" October 17, 2013 Trump tells chat show host David Letterman he has conducted "a lot of business with the Russians."

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

September 2015: Hacking allegations raised

An FBI agent told a tech-support contractor at the Democratic National Committee it may have been hacked. On May 18, 2016, James Clapper, the director of National Intelligence, said there were "some indications" of cyberattacks aimed at the presidential campaigns. On June 14, 2016 the DNC announced it had been the victim of an attack by Russian hackers.

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

July 20, 2016: Mr Kislyak enters the picture

Senator Jeff Sessions - an early Trump endorser who led his national security advisory committee - met Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak and a group of other ambassadors at a Republican National Convention event.

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

July 22, 2016: Assange thickens the plot

Julian Assange's WikiLeaks published 20,000 emails stolen from the DNC, appearing to show a preference for Hillary Clinton over Senator Bernie Sanders.

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

July 25, 2016: Cometh the hour, Comey the man

The FBI announced it was investigating the DNC hack saying "a compromise of this nature is something we take very seriously."

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

November 8, 2016: Trump elected

Donald Trump is elected president of the United States. On November 9, the Russian parliament burst into applause at the news.

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

November 10, 2016: Team Trump denies Russia link

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Rybakov said there "were contacts" between the Russian government and the Trump campaign during the election campaign. The Trump campaign issued a firm denial.

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

November 18, 2016: Flynn appointed

Trump named General Michael Flynn as his national security adviser. The former Defence Intelligence Agency chief was a top foreign policy adviser in Trump's campaign. Flynn resigned in February after failing to disclose full details of his communication with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak.

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

January 26, 2017: Yates - 'The center cannot hold'

Acting attorney general Sally Yates told White House counsel Don McGahn that Flynn made false statements regarding his calls with Kislyak. On January 30 Trump fired Yates for refusing to enforce his travel ban, which was later blocked by federal courts.

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

March 2, 2017: Sessions recuses himself

Trump said he had "total confidence" in Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Sessions announced he would recuse himself from any investigation into ties between Russia and the Trump campaign.

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

March 20, 2017: FBI examines Trump-Kremlin links

FBI Director James Comey confirmed before the House Select Committee on Intelligence that the FBI was investigating possible links between Russia and the Trump campaign.

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

May 9, 2017: Trump sacks Comey

In a letter announcing the termination, Trump wrote: "While I greatly appreciate you informing me, on three separate occasions, that I am not under investigation, I nevertheless concur with the judgment of the Department of Justice that you are not able to effectively lead the Bureau."

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

May 17, 2017: Mueller appointed special counsel

Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein appointed former FBI Director Robert Mueller to look into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election and possible collusion with the Trump campaign.

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

August 2017: FBI seizes documents from Manafort

Shortly after Mueller convenes a grand jury for the investigation, the FBI seizes documents from one of Paul Manafort’s properties as part of a raid for Mueller’s probe. The former Trump campaigner manager stepped down in August 2016 after allegations surfaced that he had received large payments linked to Ukraine’s former pro-Russian government.

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

September 2017: Trump Jr.'s talks to Senate committee

Donald Trump Jr. tells the Senate Judiciary Committee he has not colluded with a foreign government. The closed-door interview relates to his June 2016 meeting with Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya, which was also attended by his brother-in-law, Jared Kushner, and then campaign manager Paul Manafort. Trump Jr.’s emails, however, suggest the meeting was supposed to produce dirt on Clinton.

How Donald Trump's Russian connection unfolded

October 2017: Internet giants allege Russian interference

Facebook, Twitter and Google reportedly tell US media they have evidence that Russian operatives exploited platforms to spread disinformation during the 2016 US presidential election. The three companies are expected to appear before a Senate Intelligence Committee in November.

Author: Jo Harper, Kathleen Schuster

German ex-chancellor implicated

Data from the Paradise Papers shows that former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder had a management role at an offshore company.

In 2009, he was part of a so-called "independent supervisory board" of the Russian-British energy company TNK-BP, the documents show. The joint venture by Britain's BP and Russia's Alfa-Group was based, like many other oil joint-ventures, in the British Virgin Islands.

The leaks link former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder to an offshore British-Russian energy company

Schröder and two others on the board contacted Appleby "about certain procedural company affairs under the laws of the British Virgin Islands," according to an email from a London-based lawyer in October 2011. Appleby declined to offer their services due to a conflict of interest with another client.

The papers were initially leaked to the Süddeutsche Zeitung last year. The Panama Papers consist of some 11.5 million leaked documents implicating individuals stashing their wealth in offshore tax havens.

The documents revealed how Mossack Fonseca had created some 200,000 shell companies and listed the names of individuals, including politicians, celebrities and athletes, who had hidden their wealth in those companies.